Although only 34, he has a wealth of political experience, having worked as a lobbyist for the city of New Orleans in the crucial period immediately after Hurricane Katrina. But he earned those chops as a mayoral aide, generally out of the view of potential voters.

And the man he represented, the one who was very much in the public eye, is Mayor Ray Nagin, he of the 31 percent approval rating in a recent University of New Orleans poll.

So, what is a first-time candidate without a war chest or a political machine to do when he's up against a nine-term congressman, two councilmen, a state legislator, a former state and parish lawmaker and an ex-newscaster?

Some have said the only answer is to drop out. But Smith seems to have found a recipe to stay in the race:

-- Loan your campaign money and refuse any potential endorsements while blasting the way local candidates raise money and curry endorsements as vaguely nefarious vestiges of broken "pre-Katrina-style politics";

-- Try to make inroads with influential pastors who were close to your father, a retired pastor and erstwhile School Board candidate;

-- Emphasize your family ties to varied sections of the district, from grandparents who lived in Jefferson Parish to your current home in Gentilly;

-- Finally, regardless of Nagin's lack of popularity, dance with the one who brought you.

Smith readily compares himself to his former boss, saying he, too, can be the first-time, dark-horse candidate who proves people wrong. Nagin was the outsider in 2002 when he capitalized on other candidates' stumbles to slip into a runoff with Richard Pennington, the former police chief. Nagin won as the anti-establishment, pro-business option.

Even Smith's mother, Sherrye Smith, hopes her son can replicate Nagin's first race. The charter school teacher recalls that Nagin was a forgotten man when her sorority held a Founders' Day luncheon with all the candidates.

"Pennington and the others were up in front, in the light, and he was in a corner in the dark with all his literature, " she said of Nagin. "I went up to him and said, 'Well, are you going to give me some literature?' He looked surprised and said, 'Thank you, ma'am.' It just goes to show, you never count anybody out, and that's why I don't listen to polls too much."

Says he has 'best grasp'

Smith faces six other Democrats in the party primary Sept. 6. There is no Republican primary because only one Republican qualified for the race, Anh "Joseph" Cao. If a Democratic runoff is needed, it will be held Oct. 4, with the winner facing Cao and independent candidates Nov. 4.

Smith pays some attention to polls that have him dead last, in the low single digits, but only to point out that "undecided" is leading the pack. He suggests that means there are plenty of voters ready to learn about him. He said an expected low turnout would help him because those voters should be educated churchgoers who are more attuned to the issues and less swayed by endorsements and advertising.

What he wants them to know is that, other than the incumbent William Jefferson, he has spent more time in the halls of Congress than any other candidate, working the angles with the Democratic leadership, selling them on the New Orleans area's needs, just as any new congressman would have to do.

"I probably have the best grasp of the core issues of the recovery, " Smith said. "I believe I'm very competitive with him on understanding the core issues, " referring to Jefferson.

Right after Katrina, Smith was in the White House, accompanying Nagin to meetings with President Bush and his key staff, hashing out recovery dollars. He said he has 'made 40 trips to Washington in the past three years to meet with the top aides of House and Senate leaders, first with the Republicans in control, then with the Democrats in charge.

Smith said he is a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, but like Nagin, Smith lays much of the recovery failures at the feet of former Gov. Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat, and praises Republican Sen. Thad Cochran of Mississippi. Blanco sought to demonize Cochran, the Senate's chief appropriator during Katrina, for giving Mississippi more than its share of recovery dollars.

But Smith said he worked with Cochran's staff and it was the Republican's willingness to listen and increase the total funding that gave Louisiana a chance to start its housing recovery. He said Blanco never should have waited another six months for more money to start the Road Home program.

His boss not always right

Smith prides himself on having an intellectually curious and open mind. His father, T.J. Smith Sr., was the pastor of Pleasant Zion Baptist Church and First Agape Baptist Church, and used to talk to his children about the Ku Klux Klan attacks he endured in the 1950s while living in St. Joe, in St. Tammany Parish. But the younger Smith said he also learned to appreciate other ethnic traditions as a law student at the University of Wisconsin.

That time also taught Smith to appreciate and critique New Orleans -- to love his city's unique culture while also realizing that its infrastructure and other services sorely lagged in comparison with a place like Madison, Wis.

Smith said he used his ties to his father's ministry and his appreciation for other points of view to smooth once-bumpy relations between Nagin and leading local ministers. He said the mayor made the mistake initially of seeing faith-based nonprofit groups as competitors, but came around at Smith's urging to collaborate with pastors on anti-blight and crime-fighting initiatives.

Smith earns praise from local and state lawmakers for his work on recovery issues. City Council members Arnie Fielkow and Cynthia Willard-Lewis say Smith was knowledgeable and worked hard to improve often-strained relations between the council and Nagin's office.

"He tried to be the middle man between the mayor's office and the City Council, with somewhat mixed results, " said Fielkow, who is staying neutral in the congressional race that includes his council colleague, James Carter.

Smith isn't averse to criticizing Nagin, at least obliquely. He said the city's attempt to provide bridge loans for residents awaiting Road Home grants was ill-fated from the start. He also said it's a mistake for politicians to promise to run government "like a business" -- as Nagin did -- because its goals should be to provide services, not to make a profit.

He also said Nagin's lobbying efforts in Baton Rouge were lacking until he took over. Indeed, one key legislator who didn't want to be named because he is endorsing one of Smith's opponents said Smith often helped city leaders better understand issues at the Capitol.

On the other hand, Smith was reticent when asked to name legislators who could attest to his lobbying skills. And some of the most critical players in determining state recovery financing -- including former Senate President Don Hines of Bunkie and former House Appropriations Chairman John Alario of Westwego -- said they couldn't comment on Smith because they didn't know him and cannot recall ever dealing with him.

Credit card charges

While Smith tries to build a case that his experience level is competitive with Jefferson's, he said he will not take aim at Jefferson for his 16-count federal indictment on corruption charges or the charges mounting against members of his family.

Smith also hopes voters don't focus on his own foray into the media spotlight earlier this year when an investigation by The Times-Picayune uncovered $32,055 charged by Smith to the city's taxpayer-financed credit card in a six-month period -- mostly for travel, hotels and meals at swanky restaurants. Smith promised supporting documentation would be made available, but the city never delivered.

Smith takes responsibility for a $3,897 dinner in January at Morton's steakhouse, which was attended by more than 30 people, including city and state officials and their staffs. Fielkow, who attended, said it was a legitimate briefing in which Nagin made a PowerPoint presentation about recovery projects he was hoping the state Legislature would finance.

But Fielkow also said it showed the need for clear documentation whenever a city credit card is used. Since then, the city has changed its protocols to require such documentation.

"I followed the rules, " Smith said. "Do I think the rules could have been better? Yes. But hindsight is always 20/20."

David Hammer can be reached at dhammer@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3322.